What to do if your VPN got blocked by your router

A lot of ISPs configure their equipment to block VPN solutions. There are obvious reasons for doing so, which makes the VPN in nowadays meta state of the internet — an irreplaceable user resource. A lot of users have issues with routers blocking their VPN service, with varying reasons for this occurrence.

We made sure to offer some viable solutions for this error. However, even though effective, these solutions are rather broad. For that reason, we recommend contacting either your VPN and ISP tech support, as they’re responsible for the execution of the application.

How to unblock VPN when blocked by the router (ISP)

1: Change the protocol

Lots of routers block standard VPN protocols, like Point-to-Point Tunneling (PPTP) or SSTP. There’s probably an option which allows you to allow these protocols to communicate freely, but it’s easier to manipulate settings within the VPN tool itself. What you can do is switch between the available protocols until you find the one which will likely work.

Our best bet is to stick with the OpenVPN universal protocol which is the up-to-date protocol. In addition, it hardly gets any blockage by default from the ISPs, which is, in this case, the most important trait.

2: Check router settings

If you’re, on the other hand, limited to PPTP, you’ll have a hard time with certain internet providers. It operates on predetermined ports which can get locked. And, in order to avoid this, you’ll need to either add an exception for the VPN, forward dedicated ports or disable the native Firewall.

We recommend googling your exact router for the better insight on how to do that. Even though options are the same, the login access credentials vary. Also, you can disable Windows-native Firewall or, even better and much more secure — add an exception for your VPN. That way it’ll communicate freely.

3: Change the location and IP

Finally, if you can confirm that both protocol and router settings comply, the last solution we have to offer concerns location and IP. If for some reason, the certain IP address is blocked, you can change to a similar geo-location and try connecting again. Also, this is where the distinction between the premium and free-of-charge solutions gets clear. Namely, with premium solutions, like CyberGhost or Nord VPN, you’ll have an easy time changing between various locations with hundreds of IPs at your disposal.

Additionally, these premium subscription-based services offer proper tech support which will help you resolve any issue at hand. Read here about our recommendations and use a free trial to inspect them on your own.

With that, we can conclude this article. In case you have a recommendation or question, feel free to post them in the comments section below.